First Irish presidential visit to Cuba

The next conference of the Society for Irish Latin American Studies will take place in Havana, Cuba. The Conference will be co-hosted by the Oficina del Historiador de La Habana and the Colegio Universitario de San Gerónimo on February 16-18, 2017

The timing of the conference coincides with the first Irish presidential visit to Cuba. As part of the programme for the official visit. It is envisage that. Michael D.Higgins, President of Ireland and the Patron of SILAS will give the keynote address.

The annual Havana International Book Fair runs from 14-19 February. The Irish Embassy in Mexico City has invited a number of Irish writers to the event. Confirmed speakers: Prof. Jane Ohlmeyer, TCD, Colm Tobin, Joseph O´Connor, Orsola Casagrande, Lisa McInerney, Pura López-Colome, Michael McCaughan and Dermot Keogh, Emeritus Professor of UCC.

The conference seeks to bring together scholars from across disciplines who are interested in connections between Ireland, the Caribbean, Latin America and the Iberian Peninsula.

Themes of the Conference:

Island Peoples and their Diasporas; The Atlantic Space; Revolutions; Imperialisms; Comparative Colonialisms; Migrations; Immigrations; Exile, Save Haven; Gender; Sexuality; Class; Race; Ethnicity; Minorities; Creolizations; Discord, Reconciliations; Passages and Crossings; Ocean Traffic; Traveling Cultures and Languages; Music, Film; Literature; Food, Sport; Religions, Beliefs, Subcultures.